December Calendars!

It is the end of the year, the end of the decade, and the end of this year's calendar pages, haha! How do you celebrate? We have almost always let our kids stay up til midnight, because we are crazy. Most years we play family games til about 10, then watch a movie, and somehow everyone is usually still awake!

Anyway, to finish up the calendars, today we have December! This is the page for my in laws. Simple, festive and cute.

And this one is for my parents. It was inspired by THIS sketch, and has only hints of green, haha!

Thanks for viewing my calendars this year and for your continued support of my buisness. See you in 2020!
...which is completely crazy...

November Calendars

It's a new week, but I'm just going to finish up these calendars for you!

For my in laws, I hardly ever use this many pictures on a single calendar page. However, all of these pictures come from the party held for my father in law turning 95 this fall, so I wanted to share a lot of photos. I used a challenge to make this page, which is why it feels extra busy- the stripy border, the leave, the brads... but in spite of the "busy" and the lots of pics, I still think it works.

And this is the November page for my parents. I think this might be my favorite from their calendar this year. Love that big leafy swirl and I layered it in three different colors- Not Quite Navy, Cajun Craze and maybe River Rock?? It's been too long since I designed it, lol.

September Calendars + October!

Three pages for you today!

For this first September page, I used THIS color combo, and THIS layout.

For the next September page, I used THIS sketch.

And let's add on the missed October page too!

August calendars

I know, a Saturday post, but I want to get these shared before the year ends so here we go!

First up, the page I designed for my inlaws calendar. The layout was inspired by THIS page. It might be my favorite in their calendar. It's simple but I like it a lot.

And this is the page for my parents calendar. Simple and yet busy, haha, but it works.

Summer!

Two different months again today.

First up is the May page for my parents calendar. See? there's one of those green pages, hee hee... And a family tree since most of these pictures were taken at a family reunion.

Then for July, we have this fabulous flag image, so I made it red, white and blue to go with it. simple and fun. Love it.

Back to the Calendars!

I hope you had a beautiful Christmas day with loved ones! I decided to save the last of the calendar pages for the rest of this month now that they've been given, so let's go!

This page doesn't look much like March, but my mom's least favorite color in the world is green (her mother was obsessed and went completely overboard filling her life with green, haha). So by the time I got to this page, I'd already done three green pages plus the cover, so I promised her no more focus-on-the-color-green, haha! Her favorite color is purple, and since I already thought the next best thing to a green March page was a St Patrick's Day rainbow, I pulled shades of blue and purple from this fun rainbowy print.

And here is the April page for the same calendar. It's a little tricky getting everybody on there, and sometimes I just can't! But here's a good attempt!

Merry Christmas Eve!

I just wanted to wish YOU a Merry Christmas. Thank you for supporting my business and for leaving thoughts and comments that brighten my day throughout the year!

I love Christmas Eve. Usually our family has all our favorite Christmas cartoons on all day long, while we're baking the last of Santa's cookies and my husband makes some kind of wonderful, fancy dinner for us.

Here is the card we sent out to our family and closest friends, along with a little updating newsletter. Yep, I'm pretty old skool that way. I made the card with the retired MDS. I was glad these snowflakes had a lot of green since our family picture was taken in June, haha!

And since Jesus is the reason for the season, I'll leave you with one of my very favorite Christmas music videos to enjoy.

Red & Gold

This card was tricky. I love that plaid and wanted it to show off, so I cut it to be the whole card front size...but then anything I tried to add made it look way too cluttered... Finally, after a few days of thinking, I just added this greeting and called it good. And, its a good thing I have a few more sheets of this plaid so maybe I can make something a bit more spectacular later, haha!

Supplies:
Stamps: Making Christmas Bright
Ink: Real Red, Delicata Gold (sold out)
Paper: Whisper White, Real Red card stocks, Wrapped in Plaid DP
Accessories: Dimensionals

Traditional Christmas

Card week continues!
Today I have a simple card with traditional colors and images. It could be simple stamping but it requires four different stamp sets soooo... haha! And the wreath is a bit fussy to make. Anyway, it also meets two challenges- the sketch at Freshly Made Sketches and the SUO Challenge. I used the colors and the Buffalo Check, a wreath and a cardinal. And I'm really happy with how it turned out!

Supplies:

Stamps: Buffalo Check, Nature's Beauty (leaf for the wreath), Itty Bitty Christmas, October 2019 Paper Pumpkin kit (cardinal)

Ink: Real Red, Garden Green

Paper: Very Vanilla & Garden Green card stocks

Accessories: Metallic Pearls

The pearls are a little bit lost, but maybe you can see them better here?

I am still not even close to ready for Christmas, how about you? Off to get more done, haha!

October Paper Pumpkin

Today's tip is to at least browse the instructions, even if you aren't going to follow them, hahaha!

I used this gorgeous October Paper Pumpkin card as part of my November Christmas card class. I debated leaving the instructions there to let the attendees know how the kit comes, but I also hardly ever use them, and these are all experienced stampers who would be fine without instructions. And then I totally made my card wrong, haha!
Can you tell?

Of course not, thank goodness. Whoever gets this card will have no idea it's supposed to look better than it does, ha! It's just fine.
However!
Here's what it's supposed to look like:

Thanks to photos and computers, you still can't see the biggest difference. But this time you see I stamped some falling snow... and I have the tiny cardinals facing each other... but the final touch is that one side of the die cut trees and snow bank is sparkly and the other side is plain! Whoops!

So here's a short stack of this card, including the one with three mistakes, hahaha, and I might turn the rest into something else... but we'll see!

Snowflakes

Another card idea today. This one is very simple, but I think it turned out kinda pretty anyway. 

Supplies:

Stamps: Itty Bitty Christmas
Ink: Night of Navy
Paper: Seaside Spray & Whisper White card stocks
Accessories: Christmas Layers Dies, Big Shot, Liquid Glue, Glue Dots

or!

Supplies:
Stamps: Itty Bitty Christmas
Ink: Whisper White
Paper: Pacific Point & Whisper White card stocks
Accessories: Christmas Layers Dies, Big Shot, Liquid Glue, Glue Dots

Which one do you like best?

Red & Gold Plaid!

Happy Monday! I have cards this week for you!!! Today's card would have been for my December class if I'd been able to schedule one..!

Supplies:
Stamps: Itty Bitty Christmas
Ink: Delicata Gold (sold out)
Paper: Cherry Cobbler, Shaded Spruce card stocks, Wrapped in Plaid DP
Accessories: Christmas Layers Dies, Big Shot, Metallic Pearls, Gold Thread (from a Paper Pumpkin kit), Liquid Glue, Glue Dots

The plaid DP really makes the whole card. I kinda love it!

 and a little close up of the details...

halloween page!

So, today I have a scrapbook page, but it is not a calendar, nor is it for Christmas, haha! However, I went ahead and put it together and shared it because the dies and the stamps are still available until they sell out! AND! The stamp (which is kind of hard to see on the cool title) are even discounted! Don't miss that!!

Supplies:
Stamps: Wonderfully Wicked
Ink: Memento Black
Paper: Basic Black, Pumpkin Pie, Granny Apple Green card stocks, Gold Foil, Halloween Night DP (retired)
Accessories: Little Twinkle Punch, Wicked Dies, Big Shot

Can you see the spider web on the title? And the green layer? Cool, huh?

February

May as well continue on, right? haha... here is the February page, and really, the very last page I made. I tell you what, every year I think I need to take more GROUP pictures, and every year I think I need to get started on this way earlier. Both definitely apply to today too! haha... Hooray for determination.
Anyway, another simple page, but I'm happy with it.

January, again.

I had hoped to do a week of cards right now, but I don't know if that is going to happen. So in the meantime, I've got plenty of calendar pages left to share! I got them all done and sent to the printer, so I'm excited about that! This January page was kept very simple, but I think it still conveys a nice, wintery page.

How about you? Are your Christmas projects done? Have you wrapped anything? We're not even close to that part, haha...!

4th grade Gingerbread House

Happy Friday!!! I could really use a Friday right now!

Here's another Christmas-y page I made in recent weeks but saved for December. This was for a challenge to fussy cut an element for the page. In my case, I cut the little gingerbread house out of some DP. Other than that, it's a pretty simple page, but it's cute and one more old event done and in the book!

Supplies:
Ink: Real Red (on the journaling strip)
Paper: Early Espresso, Real Red & Whisper White card stock, Candy Cane Lane DP

And we'll see if I can mix things up and throw in a card sometime next week, haha!

Baking Cookies!

Here is another layout I got done in October, but chose to hold off til December to share. I used some beautiful retired DP (both sides of that sheet) for the side strips, The same package of paper is the green rectangle on the second page (it's peppermint candies). Then the "tis the season" card and the title stickers come from the same Project Life kit I used on my mini book. That's really it. Simple, but fun!

Supplies:
Paper: Soft Suede & Real Red card stock, Christmas Around the World DP (retired)
Accessories: Hello December 2016 Project Life cards & accessories (retired)

Year End Closeout!

Click HERE to see what's retiring from the Holiday Mini, and what is being discounted for these last few weeks! I know there's a couple things still on my wish list!

Lights & Trains!

Still cruising along, trying to catch up on my son's scrapbooks. I got a handful of Christmas themed pages done and held off til now to share them. The stamps are current, altho the DP and a couple of the inks are long retired.

This is one of our favorite traditions- there's a small model train show at a local museum every December and we love to go. This particular year we also walked around the outside to enjoy the light displays.

Supplies:
Stamps: Making Christmas Bright, Whimsical Upper Alphabet (retired!)
Ink: Gray Granite, Real Red, Pear Pizzazz, Hello Honey (retired), Soft Sky (retired)
Paper: Whisper White card stock, Season of Cheer DP (retired!)

December Daily 2016!

This is a project I completed in September, but thought I'd save it til now to share with you.

A December Daily album is pretty much exactly how it sounds. I've seen people create the entire album before December begins, leaving a spot or two for a picture a day and glue the pics in at the end. I've seen it made each day, creating a page to go with the events of that day. And my method, haha, is to put it together after the month is done (or way, WAY after the month has passed...)  I've done a digital book in 2009 with this concept, a 12x12 Project Life/pocket page album in 2015 and now today's project. Christmas pictures are kind of overwhelming to me..!

In 2016 I bought this little album, and the Project Life cards & accessories Stampin' Up! had for sale that year, hoping for a quick way to get my baby's first Christmas easily scrapped. Well, it only took a day to get the book done, but it took me until September of 2019...!

This book is about 6x8. I've got 30 pages in it spanning from Dec 1-31. Fortunately I had this plan when the month began, so as I took pictures I put them in their own file (on the computer) by date, so I didn't have to figure that out when I assembled everything. I take a lot of pictures, in case you weren't aware, so every few pages I'd stick in a journaling piece that covered up to that page.

This is my title page...

Supplies:

Ink: Real Red marker

Paper: Whisper White Card stock

Accessories: Hello December 2016 Project Life Card Collection & Accessory Pack 

And the back side...

 Then you can see those journaling pieces that explain the photos up to that point.

The bottom pic on this first page is blurry, but that's okay- it shows my kids watching a Christmas movie with popcorn, which was our fun activity for the day!

And even with 30 pages, there are a TON of left over tidbits for more pocket pages another year, or for traditional pages whenever. Or even for some quick Christmas cards! Can't beat that!!!

We Create Neutrals Collection Blog Hop

And just like that, December has arrived! It snowed a bunch this past week, and we spent a few days at my parents for Thanksgiving where they got over a foot in 24 hours. So I made a snowy, wintery card that could be a great Christmas card or really to send out anytime in December or January.

This month we're focusing on the Neutral Color Collection. Currently, there is a blue, green and a red shade in the Neutrals so I pulled in some Night of Navy. I used the latest from Freshly Made Sketches for the layout. I used the Night of Navy ink and an aquapainter to scribble a blue background. Then I stamped the row of trees in Memento Black. I used the SUO Challenge for die cuts to layer up a white evergreen tree, and a snow bank across the front. Then I layered the whole thing on to a white base and there's my card!

Supplies:
Stamps: Winter Woods
Ink: Night of Navy, Memento Black
Paper: Whisper White card stock
Accessories: Frosted Epoxy Droplets, Aquapainter, In The Woods Dies, Big Shot, Dimensionals

Now hop along to see what Libby has made to inspire you. It's an extra short hop with the holidays, but still great ideas for you! Come see, and tell us what you think! And Happy December to you!

Working hard!

Today I have a fun page for your Friday!
This time I used a tic-tac-toe challenge and picked the row with orange, chevrons and a tag. I made the tag with layers of card stock, and I used the circle dies to cut out part of it with a different ink. For the chevrons, I used the long retired Chevron Punch on typing paper, then sponged the shapes with shades of orange and gray. I love how that turned out. Then I used the much loved, long retired, Gorgeous Grunge stamp set to mess the page up. His job is cleaning up a bakery and he comes home a MESS, haha! The splatters and streaks and all the things reflect it pretty accurately! I am very happy with how this page turned out!

Supplies:
Stamps; Gorgeous Grunge, Adventure Awaits
Ink: Pumpkin Pie, Memento Black, Smoky Slate, Gray Granite, Peekaboo Peach (retired), Peach Parfait (retired)
Paper: Smoky Slate, Basic Black, Whisper White, Pumpkin Pie &  Peekaboo Peach (retired) card stocks
Accessories: Circle Dies, Big Shot, Black Grosgrain Ribbon (retired), Chevron Punch (retired), Stamping Sponges, Stapler
Font: Ink Free

Tropical Birthday

Winter has definitely arrived, just in time for holiday travel. It is snowy, windy and very cold! Later today I need to stop by the home of someone who happens to have a birthday today so of course I need to take a birthday card with me! This is what I whipped up last night, to counter the very cold weather. I used the now passed Freshly Made Sketch and it fits the November #simplestamping challenge, which is totally random, haha! But I really like how it turned out and I might make a few more to have on hand!

Supplies:
Stamps: Friend Like You
Ink: Bermuda Bay, So Saffron, Soft Suede, Granny Apple Green
Paper: Whisper White & Granny Apple Green card stock
Accessories: Copper Trim, Glue Dots

I started by sponging the "sand", then I stamped the waves in Bermuda Bay and sponged more Bermuda Bay over them. Then I did the tree trunks in the sand, and the palm leaves over that. Super simple, super cute- and it could be for anyone!

12th Grade!

Happy Monday to you! Today's post mixes things up just a bit...

Obviously, since I am a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, I get almost all of my inventory from Stampin' Up! That's what keeps me in business after all... haha! However, right now we only carry a black scrapbook album. I like the albums to reflect the person if at all possible. My husband used to buy albums for Christmas, but the store he shopped at went out of business. So I tried the local scrapbook store to see what they had...and literally stumbled upon an aisle of DP and stickers featuring the four nearest high schools and the two nearest universities. Of COURSE I had to get some from my kids' school! Soo this page is still a lot of Stampin' Up! but a little bit other too.

Supplies:
Paper: Whisper White, Balmy Blue & Pacific Point card stocks, misc DP
Accessories: Night of Navy/Sahara Sand Baker's Twine, Big Shot, Large Numbers Dies (retired) misc stickers

July Calendar Page!

Today I have the obviously July page for my inlaws calendar, haha. I knew you'd never guess... The background is pretty simple because there are a lot of photos on this page, which is of course their favorite part.

Colors are Pacific Point, Real Red and Whisper White.

May Calendar Page

Hello again! Calendar week continues! Here is the May page for my inlaws calendar. I shared April's page in October.

This time, I used the second half of THIS sketch, off Pinterest. I also used a color challenge, which I almost never do. I just couldn't pick colors for this page and I really like how these colors worked together. It's Old Olive, Pool Party and Poppy Parade.

Online Extravaganza!

We interrupt the calendar pages to get excited about the Online Extravaganza! This is a three day sale to help you stock up on the essentials! Don't miss out!

Click to see the above photo a bit better, haha, and click HERE to see everything and place your order! If your total is less than $150, use Hostess Code DYWBA4HA to save on shipping.